Canon reveals the EOS M2 mirrorless interchangeable lens camera

Canon finally entered the mirrorless interchangeable lens camera market in the middle of last year with the EOS M, which saw the company squeeze some DSLR technology and an APS-C size sensor into a compact camera-sized body. A smaller and lighter successor has now been revealed, and it's been named, appropriately enough, the M2. The pixel count and image processing engine remain the same, but the new model promises more than twice the autofocus speed of its predecessor, and now packs built-in Wi-Fi.

Native ISO sensitivity runs from 100 to 12800, which can be extended up to ISO25600 for clearer images in low light, and it's reported capable of 4.6 fps continuous shooting for a burst of 13 frames in JPEG or 5 frames RAW. The M2's 31-point Hybrid CMOS II AF system is claimed to be about 2.3 x faster autofocus than the EOS M.

There's no viewfinder on this camera, so users will need to frame up shots via the non-tilting 3-inch, 1040k-dot resolution ClearView II touchscreen display panel with anti-reflective coating. The M2 is capable of Full HD video recording at up to 30 fps, with stereo microphones to the front capturing Linear PCM audio, and there's an included HDMI output for playing movies on a big screen TV direct from the camera.

The EOS M2 benefits from built-in 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi connectivity for remote shutter control using a smartphone and wireless file transfer of images from camera to camera. Images can be viewed on a DLNA-compliant media player, and if users have a Wi-Fi-enabled printer, photos can also be sent wirelessly for printing. The included Li-ion battery should be good for about 200 shots between charges.

The Canon EOS M2 comes in black or white and is set to hit the shelves toward the middle of this month in Japan. We're currently awaiting news from Canon on whether it will be make its way to Europe or the US. It will be sold as body only, or with one, two or three kit lenses.